January 2000

Dear Friends,

This is the second part of our first letter from China as mission workers with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). This one is from Kim.

On September 11, John and I were honored and excited to join thousands of Chinese Christians gathered in the Huangpu sports arena for a service of celebration and worship commemorating the 20-year anniversary of the re-opening of the churches in Shanghai. During the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), Christians, like nearly everyone in China, suffered terrible persecution. People often compare those years to walking "through the valley of the shadow of death." Yet, even when the light of a new day began to dawn with the re-opening of the churches at the end of the 1970s, few would have dared to imagine the freedom and growth that Chinese churches enjoy only 20 years later.

Currently, there are 86 churches in Shanghai and more than 43 meeting points (about 130 congregations). More than 60 of these have been built since 1980. The East China Theological Seminary is also located in Shanghai and serves not only the Shanghai Municipality, but also the four provinces of Shandong, Zhejiang, Fujian and Jiangxi. Choirs from 12 of the churches offered anthems of praise and thanksgiving and then joined their forces to create a single choir of 1000 voices for the premier of a new Chinese anthem of celebration written by Pastor Shi Qi Gui, a friend and former pastor of mine.

This was John's first real visit to Shanghai, and although I lived there for two years, from 1986-1988, it might as well have been a first visit for me! The city of Shanghai has undergone dramatic changes in the last 10 years, and many parts of it are practically unrecognizable to me now. Pray for Christians in Shanghai and for Christians throughout China as they seek ways to strengthen their churches and make the good news of Jesus Christ known and accepted.

The latest on life with John & Kim

The baby is an ever-popular topic with the students, and of course, we are more than happy to indulge anyone who wants to talk about our little bundle-to-be. They are all excited that the baby is due on February 5, so close to the date of their big holiday—Spring Festival—and they are full of advice about everything I could possibly want to know. I've had good medical care here and all the doctor's reports have been glowing, so we continue to be grateful and excited as the days whiz by.

We ask your prayers for a young colleague who recently committed suicide. Scott Minson, 25 years old, was new to the Amity family, and we were all shocked and saddened by his death in October. Please keep the Minson family, Scott's students, and Scott's teaching partner in your prayers as they struggle to accept, cope with, and find hope beyond the loss of this fine young life.

Perhaps some people travel to distant lands to escape something, only to find that it travels with them and only looms larger when familiar coping mechanisms are no longer at hand. We have no idea what the whole story is, but this is a call for us all to be aware that there are people everywhere who are hurting, wounded deep within, who need evidence of God's love in their world. Please pray that our lives will be a clear sign of that love among the people here—colleagues, students, classmates and friends—and know that we are also praying for you, too, as you reach out to others in Jesus's name.

At the very end of September both John and I had bad colds. This happened right on the brink of National Day, which is always an important holiday in China, but turned out to be even more so this year. This October 1st was the 50th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, so there were all kinds of magnificent celebrations throughout the country. Nanjing was no exception, but we didn't really get to participate in the festivities because we were both sick.

This all led to an "interesting" experience for me on the morning of September 30th. The day before our Foreign Affairs Officer, Yang Qian, had called to say that the local TV station wanted to interview some local foreigners about their thoughts on the 50th anniversary celebrations. Would I be willing to talk to them? I said I'd be glad to if my voice came back.

The next morning I didn't feel well at all, so after seeing John off to school, I watched the big flag-raising ceremony through our little breakfast nook window, and then promptly went back to bed. Ten minutes later, I heard someone tapping on our window. It was Yang Qian. Silly me thought maybe she had come by to see how I was doing, so I got up, wrapped a robe around myself (which doesn't really fit anymore!), and opened the door. Much to my shock and chagrin, she was standing there with two TV reporters and a
cameraman!

It was incredibly awkward, but I finally persuaded them to give me 30 minutes to shower, get dressed, and straighten up a little. Thirty minutes later, they were back for the interview, particularly interested in the fact that we were going to have our first baby there in China. As it turns out, that's the segment that actually made it into the local broadcast. It all seems funny now, but at the time I'm pretty certain that it was nothing short of a miracle that I didn't strangle Yang Qian on the spot! God is good, and definitely does have a sense of
humor!

John and Kim Strong